This disclosure provides apparatus and methods relating to peristaltic pumps and more particularly to pumps, which includes a releasable occlusion bed or stator.
Equipment for controllably dispensing beverage materials, fluids or components are generally well known in the prior art. A variety of general forms of equipment have been developed for dispensing liquid flavor ingredients for mixing with a dilution material. For example, in the juice dispensing industry, machines have been developed that can be controllably operated by a user to dispense a desired quantity of a juice beverage. Such equipment might be used in a food service setting, including, but not limited to, a cafeteria, kitchen or other setting in which a user can simply and easily operate a control such as a push button to dispense a quantity of beverage.
Such a machine could use a beverage concentrate which is mixed with water to reconstitute a desired beverage. Use of a concentrate allows a machine to dispense an increased volume of resultant beverage in relation to the volume of material or concentrate used in the system. In other words, a beverage concentrate can be placed in the machine and controllably dispensed. The beverage concentrate can be dispensed for mixing with water or some other dilution material to produce a desired reconstituted beverage. Additionally, the ratio of concentrate to dilution material can be adjusted for profitability, personal preferences or other mixing criteria.
In order to properly control the dispensing of the resultant beverage, a pump or other driving device must be used to move concentrate from a storage container to the resultant beverage container or a mixing stream for mixing with a dilution material. Prior art equipment have used peristaltic pumps to provide the motive force to draw or otherwise move concentrate from a concentrate container to the dilution stream.
A peristaltic pump includes a controllable rotary device, an occlusion bed or stator, and a flexible tube retained in a controllably compressible condition between the rotary device and the stator. The peristaltic pump operates on a peristaltic action in which rollers on the rotary device or rotary sequentially pinch or squeeze the flexible tube against the stator. In this regard, controllable, relatively small volumes of concentrate can be moved from the concentrate container. Controllably powering the motor coupled to the rotor causes the pump to pump concentrate from the container. Controllably deenergizing the motor connected to the rotor stops the pumping action. Stopping the pumping action operates as a valve to prevent further drainage, dripping or pumping of concentrate from the container.
By controlling the pump speed for a predetermined tube size and compressibility characteristics, a desired volume of concentrate can be dispensed over a specified period of time. Dispensing typically delivers the concentrate to a dilution flow path such as water being dispensed for mixing with the concentrate. The two paths can be brought together in a nozzle to produce a consistent output or resultant beverage. Alternatively, the two paths can be brought together in an output stream and mixed in a container receiving the two products.
Regardless of the details associated with the flexible tube, mixing paths and nozzles, improvements have been made in the pump apparatus and the interaction of the pump with the flexible tube. The present disclosure provides information relating to improvements in the structure and function of a peristaltic pump.
The exemplification set out herein illustrates embodiments of the disclosure and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the disclosure in any manner. Additional features of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the disclosure as presently perceived.